Imperium Offtopicum: The Aftermath

Nuclear strike in the Marian Republic

MBUJI-MAYI, FEDERATION OF THE SAVANNA: The Congo is in crisis as radioactive fallout descends upon the region in the worst act of terrorism since the end of the world war. At approximately 10:22 local time, a nuclear device detonated above the Bouenza Department, destroying it and neighbouring territories. The death count is currently unknown, estimated to be in the millions.

The identity of the perpetrator is not yet known, nor is the method used to deliver the bomb. Early warning systems failed to register a missile beforehand, leading to speculation of a 'dirty bomb' linked to the stolen Monegasque warhead. However, nuclear physicists assert that the explosion pattern could only be achieved with a high-altitude detonation, meaning delivery was either by aircraft or rocket.

The capital city of Kinshasa was caught in the periphery of the strike zone, and hope for survivors is slim. Although the Brazzaville dispute had led to worries of nuclear terrorism, that the epicentre of the blast occurred to the west of the city has cast doubt on the motivation of the attack.

The whereabouts of President de Mar are currently unknown.

With fallout patterns not expected to settle for weeks, the surviving Marian government has ordered evacuation of the area, with refugee camps being established in the easternmost region of the country. Citizens have also fled to neighbouring Konchasa and the Federation of the Savanna.

The New Hetmanate reports it is investigating the incident and will justly punish the parties responsible.

He was supposed to be in Kinshasa, being El Presidente and all. But he wasn't. He was smarter than that.

He knew the world was full of narrowminded individuals, Kaetif and human alike. During his time as President, he had taken it upon himself to restore the dignity of the Marian Republic after the disastrous Third World War.

Doing so involved establishing Marian military power. The defense budget had remained large thanks to the Social Nationalist agenda of sustainable deficits. While vertical farms were built in some regions, weapons were being developed in others.

It was for this reason that, despite widespread technophobia in Marian society, military technology remained top notch, even without the robotics of the Operarius era. Such a high tech military machine had a downside - it was vulnerable to cyberattacks. As such, Sombra had overseen the development of a national killswitch, ostensibly to prevent a hacking of things such as the missile system.

The killswitch was a wonderous success, and tests carried out in secret. Everywhere from Peru to Iberia to the Congo could be shut down with but the use of the President's "second nuclear football."

But military and foreign endeavors did not stop there. While tensions were roused in Cantabria to try and cover up the assault on Brazzaville, Sombra's name - Spanish for "Shadow" - couldn't have been more appropriate. Disguised as strategic aid, he had actually laundered billions to insurgents around the globe, often without the knowledge of most legislators. He was a virtual autocrat, though the People loved him and so the legislature couldn't really do much.

But it went from the despicable to the downright horrifying. His various Genome Projects had a far more sinister goal in mind: they were indeed studying genetic differences, but not for civilian purposes. He was attempting to find genes exclusive to the human race, and from there, build gene bombs theoretically capable of exterminating all human beings. The research was still in progress, though much had been gathered already from dissection of "volunteers." Many of these volunteers were technically executed, but in reality had been shipped off to be used as guinea pigs.

He had already dispensed copies of the data to various "friends" of his with research capabilities. They could finalise the project if they so wished.

---

With that, it was time for the next phase. Pulling the briefcase - the aide's severed hand still hanging from it - towards himself, he opened it... soon pressing the switch. Thanks to a little re-wiring, it would take about an hour before the killswitch activated. That was all the time the Presidente needed...

Taking the second briefcase, he surveyed the array of corpses, once his personal guard, that littered the room. He merely grinned at the grisly mess he had caused, his claws as red as his eyes. He grasped one of the vanquished corpses in a claw as he moved towards the large, thick glass only a few feet away.

On the other side, a white-furred, savage Abhorrent, looking like a wolf but with sharp, hedgehog-like protrusions along its body, stood, claws tapped against the glass. But it wasn't aggression that caused this posture. It was delight, pure sadistic delight. Delight at seeing Sombra so ruthlessly and efficiently butcher his entire guard and their pathetic firearms.

Sombra had encountered this creature many times before. Ever since the dark and light-furred creatures laid eyes upon eachother, they took an interest in the other. It was through this interest that the real developments of the project had been made. Usually without company, he would walk into the enclosure, alone.

"Espada," as Sombra would name him, after the word for "sword," had naturally attacked during their first meeting. But "Espada" would quickly find himself rendered from predator to prey, subdued by the large, bulky wolf-man. His spikes, while like daggers - hence his name - would not cause Sombra discomfort or weakness, not matter how deep they dug into his flesh. Sombra would just hold Espada tight, depriving him of his killing prowess, and would continue to do so every time Espada tried to make a lunge.

It was through this, that Sombra learned the Abhorrents weren't complete savages. Such should have been apparent by how much they relished a fight, how much they relished the fear. There was one thing all Abhorrents seemed to understand: dominance.

Akin to the wolves that he himself was descended from, Sombra had learned the Abhorrents respected power. At least, Espada did. But it all made sense - humans were picked off so readily because they were soft, weak, not standing a chance without their precious technology. His theory seemed to have been proven true: physical prowess was the basis of Abhorrent hierarchy. They had no taste in "civilisation" because it made one neglect the physical for the mental, the martial for the cultural.

And Sombra, having been engineered to be above the average human in his physical capabilities, could naturally command such respect. Beyond that, he shared their bloodlust, something Espada clearly approved of. Sombra not only had the power, but he actively used it.

Espada, like any good canine, was quick to sit and await Sombra's command as the latter entered the enclosure, not even bothering to close it - everyone at the facility was deceased. At least, any he had encountered.

"My friend... you must be famished." He threw the corpse, and the severed hand, to a side of the room. Even with such tempting morsels only a few yards away, Espada stood at attention. "Eat." With those words, Espada naturally rushed towards Sombra's gift to him.

Discarding much of his Presidential wear, the massive wolf Kaetif sat down on the floor, which was that of a natural grass. The glass window was a two-way mirror, a means of observing the Abhorrents.

"I was born here..." Sombra said as he surveyed the room with his crimson gaze, Espada listening even as he fed. It was clear the Abhorrents had the capability to understand words as much as emotions, if only somewhat... they just didn't care for those words when they came from the weak.

"Operarius desired to make super soldiers... though he didn't succeed. As enhanced as we all were, we were not what he wanted... he tried to destroy us. How poetic we ended up destroying him instead..." Sombra looked at his bloodstained claws, relishing the fond memory of his personal disemboweling of the tyrant.

"...he took someone important to me..." A tear or two seemed to pool in the wolf's eyes. While such emotion would seem to betray weakness, Espada knew that despite Sombra's soft side, Sombra was anything but weak! "It was as much a personal... as a political affair."

"After our revolution's success, things seemed good... but my friends turned on me. They said my desire to maintain our military prominence, and aggressively protect Kaetif the world over, would cause another world war. My only thought was I wasn't a coward like them and their 'peace.' Where was their 'peace' when Operarius was in command?!"

He growled... and Espada's muzzle seemed to curl into a little bit of a smile. He liked Sombra when he was angry. Anger often led to so much wonderful violence!

Sombra sighed, "...while I drove them from power, it was meaningless. My People supported me, supported my vision. They saw Blitz as the incompetent buffoon he was, and his wife as the ruler behind the curtain. They chose me."

"Alas... things didn't go as planned. Even as the world caved in on us, my people stood firm with me. They saw me as building a stronger country, one worthy of the Sons of Mars." He started to growl again... face in a disgusted grimace.

"And now that a pack of fools have killed so many, I am seen as the perpetrator of this incident." He slammed his fist into the wall... which almost seemed to crack a little.

He stood back up, opening the briefcase.

"When I tried to lead by example, they would not follow. When I tried to lead by force, they resisted. I've learned..." He put his claw upon the key, the missile silo's own key having long since been bypassed for just this occassion... "That this world is beyond salvation! It is but one great phoenix... a fourth war, shall emerge from the ashes of the third..."

He turned the key.

"And a new order shall emerge from the ashes of the Fourth."

With Espada done feeding, Sombra was quick to fashion himself a cloak from the Presidential cape. Being in Latin America, he would resurface when the time was right, hopefully upon gaining the loyalty of those he once considered beasts.... Espada would be invaluable in this regard.